Thank you to our armed forces

Memorial Day, known by many among us as Decoration Day, is not a day to remember every person who has died, but to remember those who died in service to our nation.

Many towns may lay claim to the holiday, but one strong argument leans heavily in favor of somewhere in the South even before the end of the Civil War.

“Kneel Where Our Loves Are Sleeping,” a hymn written by Nella Street in 1867, was “Dedicated to The Ladies of the South who are decorating the graves of the Confederate Dead.”

“… They fell like brave men, true as steel, And pour’d their blood like rain, We feel we owe them all we have, And can but weep and kneel again,” ends the first verse. The national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, Gen. John Logan, officially proclaimed Memorial Day on May 5, 1868, and the day was first observed May 30 of that same year when flowers were placed on the graves of both Union and Confederate graves at Arlington National Cemetery .

On Memorial Day, each Arlington grave is marked with the placement of an American flag, like so many graves of veterans are decorated at other national cemeteries and in many churchyards around the country.

Guest speakers, such as Glenn Frazier at Sun City’s ceremonies, remind us all of the hardships many sailors, soldiers, Marines and airmen suffered beyond just fighting a war. Torture, beatings, starvation, hard labor, little food, less comfort and no contact with home were the norm, not the exception. Families mourned their service member, as Frazier’s did, when his dog tags — which he had left in a mass grave — were recovered.

He wanted his parents to have some idea of what happened to him if he did not make it home.

Many like Frazier did make it home through inner strength and determination that kept them going even with the threat of execution.

We are thankful that there were men and women such as Frazier who were willing to serve their country and — if necessary — make the ultimate sacrifice so that we are able to enjoy the freedoms we have been granted.